The Phantom
by StandoutAnonymous
Summary: A take on the events leading up to the Collapse, this story follows the path of the enigmatic Phantom.


_How does one properly tell the story of Jade the Phantom?_

 _A fine quandary._

 _Examining the Phantom takes proper perspective. That much may seem obvious, but for her it is that much more important. To truly know and explain what the Phantom has done and why she has done it takes inside knowledge from those in her confidence, like, and I am proud to say it, myself._  
 _So many points of view, all with their separate biases, all intersecting on one single point. In the truth, the Phantom is both all of them and none at all._  
 _To help in understanding my point, allow me to elaborate:_  
 _To the Vex, she was a deity. To the Cabal, she was only referred to as the Empress. The Hive, she was the Hallowed Flame._  
 _The Fallen knew her as the Phantom. We were the first to have been taken under her wing. Yet all the same, our view of the Phantom is distorted by the glass of her achievements._  
 _Humanity, in its own ever roiling tide of lies and deceit, turns its eyes away from what some may consider to be their greatest failure._  
 _And yet, in the end, as expected, those close to her knew her best. I, who have seen her grow since the time she first met us, do not condescend with this literal piece, do not pretend to the right to take responsibility for summing her character._  
 _I think I did know her, however._  
 _One must ignore the smoke and mirrors of the stories, the grand tales of her exploits among us. One might be convinced that the thing I praise is but a monster, a traitor to its kind, a bloodthirsty animal gifted with unfortunate genius._

 _I disagree._

 _I saw only a girl._

 _A curious girl, who was simply caught in the rushing tide of fate._

* * *

How much time?"  
"... 58.6 seconds..."  
"You sure?"  
"Positive."  
"…you ready, lil' sis?"  
"51... 50..."

Both girls tensed. The stench of sweat and fear was more a comfort to the two in that wooden crate than any warm caress. Excitement pulsed through both of their young hearts, the excitement of the climax of hard work and the promise of plentiful rewards as result.

Three weeks of planning had led to this moment. They had been watching the market and its wealth of food and goods since long before then, mouths salivating at the thought of, just once, tasting food as the City's do-gooders did. The sweet aromas of roasts, bread, chocolate and any other of the various nutrients available was almost enough to override the well-ingrained sense of caution the sisters had cultivated over their short years in the underground.  
But the pair knew full well what happened to the less fortunate. The cries of the many who found themselves at the mercy of the Law could be heard across the rooftops and beyond. The marks of the shockwhip could be seen, and worse, smelt on the other urchins days after punishment had been administered. It was a fate the two had been careful to avoid.

For the City was not a safe place for the careless. Under the harsh regime of the Law enforcement, the shadow beneath the Traveler's mysterious bulk felt ever darker in the filthy backstreets. Arrests came with such regularity that the sisters had long since abandoned the practice of relying on others.  
Remaining inconspicuous was a must. Notoriety could be even worse than having the police down on your back. Already, word of the two sisters spread like fire through the greasy underground of the otherwise proud City.  
Jade knew this. Sidi, the eldest of the two, was not oblivious, but failed to really see the implications it had. She liked the simplicity of life on the run, Sidi did. The complexities of underground politics were lost on her.

Not Jade, however.

Jade grew ever wary of the attention they had attracted, and this scheme, by far the biggest of their career, would shatter what little remained between them and the merciless world of the adults. She already discussed relocation with Sidi, who had reluctantly agreed.  
"I won't miss it." she had said, gesturing at the surrounding filth. "But at least it's home, ya'know?"  
Their planned departure was a week from the very day they pulled the scheme off. They had considered the moon, but settled for Venus. On Venus, at least, they didn't throw criminals out the airlock.

Jade brought a harsh hand across her own cheek, broken from her mindless daydream. _Now is not the time for the mind to wander_ , she scolded herself.  
Sidi spared her sister a concerned glance before returning to her previous task, which just happened to be counting the seconds away. They both knew the importance of timing, from countless smaller operations just like this. Yet, unlike the others, this involved true and tried weaponry.  
Jade herself had come two evenings prior, having just spent seven sleepless nights designing and testing it, to plant the sisters' secret weapon. They had spent many days collecting materials, but in the end the device was everything they expected it to be.  
Timed for the perfect moment, Jade had created a homemade flashbang. With a radius of one hundred feet, the bomb also targeted the system inside the glass of conventional security cameras, blinding them just as effectively as people.

The dangers were high, however. Possession of such a weapon could get you killed, or worse. Terrorism was rare, but even so the Law enforcement kept an oppressive eye on the trade of dangerous materials. Even magnesium had a team of inspectors keeping close watch.  
The pair had to scrape spare magnesium off of used birthday sparklers to finish the bomb in the first place.  
 _Desperate times call for desperate measures,_ Jade mused. _Though one would hardly call used sparklers desperate.  
_  
 _Ten seconds was lasting a lot longer than it should. Sidi had only just hit the count of four. Had something gone wrong with the plan?  
No,_ Jade thought. _Stress is affecting my sense of time. Everything is going as expected. I have nothing to worry about.  
_  
 _I trust you, Sidi._

The word 'One' hissed from her sister's mouth across the small space between them, lingering far longer than it should.  
A resounding bang shook the rickety wood of the box, lighting the cracks in blazing white. Jade had just enough time to close her eyes and block the light before she too, was blinded to the world.  
Sidi did not hesitate. Even as the yelling and screaming began, the lid of the box was sent skidding across the concrete with force only an adult should have been able to summon.  
The girl ignored the sun's own blinding light, snatching the large sack from between Jade's fingers and vaulting out of the depths of the wooden frame. Jade, who was a bit slower to react, was only just clambering into the world above.

The market was set in the City's own personal garden, which would explain the abundance of flowers and plants, waving lazily in the breeze. Tables were set in close proximity to each other, and only a number of feet away from the food carts and other such things. The cobblestone ground gave the whole setting a natural, cozy feel, all in heavy contrast to the people inside it.  
Men and women, vendors and customers, eating, walking, talking, all now lay in their own separate positions of panic and fear. Flailing around like drunken ducks, tumbling head over heels to the unforgiving ground, or simply stunned into stillness by the vicious light of the flashbang. Glass shattered as it fell from careless fingers or was knocked from its place, liquids of such variety sent across the uneven concrete like a reverse fireworks display.

Only one person seemed truly awake.

Sidi was merciless. Her movements required no effort, darting from table to table, person to person, relieving them of any and all of their valuable possessions. Gold watches, diamond rings, priceless necklaces, Sidi's hands were like spiders in fast forward as she stripped the men and women of their money. Wallets were snatched and dunked with feverish speed into the rapidly swelling sack. It hurt Jade's eyes to even watch.  
Twenty six of their precious forty-five seconds had passed when Sidi moved on to the food.  
She targeted fruit, nuts, anything of lasting value. Even so, Jade almost laughed as her sister mischievously snatched a box of doughnuts and tucked it under her arm.  
 _How long?_ Sidi mouthed across the courtyard.  
 _Eighteen!_ Jade mouthed back.  
Sidi did not waste another second. Dashing between the chairs and legs of the now reawakening people, she gripped her sister by the collar of her tattered shirt.  
 _Reawakening?_

Oh no.

Judging by the rising panic in Sidi's breathing, she too knew something had gone wrong. Despite Jade's hissed protests, she found herself tucked under her sister's arm, crammed beside the box of doughnuts, which poked her ribs uncomfortably.  
 _A critical miscalculation,_ Jade's still working brain told her as she was carried off towards the drain. _I missed something here.  
_  
What did I do wrong?

The adults were starting to move now. Whatever blindness remained could not hide the shapes of the thieves who were now making their escape. The few who were thinking clearly must have pieced together at least part of what had happened.  
Sidi could have made it easily on her own, even with the heavy sack of loot over her shoulder. The added weight of Jade's own body, however, hindered her. It was clear that Sidi was struggling.  
All the same, Sidi was not one to give up. With a vicious growl, she charged a large man in a white waistcoat who had the misfortune of being in the way at the time.  
He did not get out of the way. Jade knew the fate of the man long before it happened. He was an obstacle, and whatever short history Jade's sister had had made it clear her preferred method of dealing with obstacles.

Short in statue compared to most adults, what little there was of Sidi was toughened, coordinated muscle and anger. Many a foolish street urchin had discovered this the hard way.

Tightening her fist into a single concentrated point, Sidi brought her arm thundering into the man's bulging gut. Her hand hit so hard and so fast the straining buttons of the coat burst with a snap, lashing backwards and narrowly missing the pair of sisters.  
Sidi dodged the man as he bent double, dancing neatly out of range despite the heavy load over her shoulder. Jade tried as hard as she could to reduce the workload for her sister, but the attempts were feeble.  
Hiking the bag farther up her back, Sidi made yet another break for the rusty drain grate. Jade was expecting a surge of people, grasping hands clinging tightly to whatever clothes and limbs they could find, but was surprised to find the exact opposite occur.  
Men, women and children alike all parted way before Sidi in a panicked frenzy, knocking over chairs and clearing a path as the violent thief plowed onwards through their midst. Screams pierced the air as Sidi kicked out viciously at the crowd, sharp heel narrowly missing the exposed midriff of a tall middle-aged lady, empty purse thrown sky high in her panic.  
Charging the last few feet, Sidi yarded the grate from its loosely fitted home and hurled it nonchalantly over her shoulder, ignoring the scream of pain as the metal made contact with flesh.  
The bag went first, dropped without a second thought, the sound of the goods landing with a crunch drifting upwards.  
Sidi had only time to say; "you first," before dropping Jade unceremoniously into the black pit.  
"Wait-!" Jade called, but it was too late. Even now, she could feel the uncomfortable sensation of falling, the vertigo that came with tumbling through the impenetrable darkness.  
"Sid-" she screamed.  
The impact of the bag on her back cut her short with a sickening crack.

Jade tried to speak, only to emit a rather repulsive choking gasp.  
 _My lungs... are they damaged?_ she thought.  
 _No... I am just winded. I will be able to speak in a moment._

A quick assessment.

 _What condition am I in?_ she asked herself.  
 _My head must have remained undamaged in the fall. Chest and internal organs seem intact, although the status of my spinal column remains in question. My back was badly hurt, judging by the throbbing pain... Left arm could be out of commission... Perhaps the right is working?  
_  
Jade curled her right hand in a fist.

 _All in working order,_ she thought with a satisfied, if pained, grin. _Legs too, by the feel of it._

Jade rolled clumsily out of the way, aware of the impending fall her sister was about to take. She was not disappointed, as Sidi came plummeting down through the sunlit grate, whooping as she fell.  
She landed considerably more graceful than Jade had, killing her momentum with a short somersault and getting to her knees just between the bag and her now-just-recovering sister.  
Sidi hefted the sack onto her shoulder and gestured hurriedly. "Up, Jade. We've gotta go!"  
Jade could only nod. Leaving was, after all, the best course of action available.

Sidi stopped only to watch her little sister get to her feet before booking it down the slippery rim of the drain, bag jingling with the noise of her motion. Jade, in her haste to follow, nearly slipped and fell, only to catch a hold of the grimy wall and stay on her feet.  
Even as Jade ran, she fervently hoped she could catch up. Hindered as Sidi was with the weight of the loot, the elder sister was still far faster than little Jade. Her feet did not hold fast to the rim of the sewer pipe, and she found herself tripping almost every other step.

The eerie green light of the underground made it difficult to see, and Jade only found her way through its depths by the sound of the sack of loot, no longer trusting the now faded light of the open drain.

This chase went on for at least ten more minutes, by which time Jade was gasping for breath as she nearly collapsed at her sister's side. Sidi had stopped at the familiar intersection they both knew so well. Three drain pipes, including the one they had just run down, all combined to form one giant torrent of stinking filth that roared down the downhill stretch to the river below. A massive net was stretched across the four corners, a tool to catch any particularly large chunks of garbage that the disposal team would take care of later. As it was, the net was completely empty but for the splashes of soiled water that spattered the thick cables with muck.  
Sidi glanced at her sister. "Y'all right?"  
Jade did not reply. She couldn't.  
The larger girl patted her on the back. "I'll be back. Just gimme a minute."  
Jade shook her head, still doubled over, breathing hard.  
"You sure?" Sidi asked, unconvinced.  
"I can... make it." Jade gasped.  
Sidi looked concerned, but after a second's hesitation accepted Jade's word and started across the net.

This had always been the worst part about coming home, for both of them. The net was slimy with accumulated muck, and the space between the cables was just enough to fall through if you weren't careful. As it was, Jade was not worried.

 _Sidi is more than capable,_ she thought. _If anything, I should be more worried about myself._

It was a bit of a spectacle, to watch Sidi dance across the thick cables with the massive bag in hand, loot crashing and clanging loud enough to make Jade wince.  
Less than a minute passed before her sister hit the other side, hiking the sac further up her back before turning to watch.  
No words of encouragement came across the space between them. Even as Jade placed her hands on the net, she was grateful for it. Noise would only distract her.  
The rushing water splashed her in the face occasionally as she crawled sideways, crablike, across the net. It took less time to reach the other side for her than for Sidi, if only because Sidi was less efficient and had been hindered by the bag.  
As Jade got to her feet, she put one hand briefly on Sidi's shoulder before making her way to the solid concrete wall, fingers trailing the surface for the telltale marks.  
"Anyone watching?" Jade hissed.  
Sidi took a brief look over her shoulder before replying. "Nope. We're in the clear."  
Jade resumed her search. It did not take long.  
"Key?"  
The cold metal was pressed into her hand. She lined it up with some grunts of frustration before jamming the rusted shape into the barely visible keyhole.

Really, when Jade and Sidi had discovered the Den, it had been entirely by accident. As observant as Jade was even at that young age, two years ago, she had nearly missed the thin lines that were all that defined the service door there.  
It was a stroke of luck that they had found any key at all, but there it was, clamped in the tiles of the sewer. Convenient, but perhaps too much so. Sidi and Jade had both been laden with all of their worldly possession, which is to say, nothing. Nothing but the steel pipe and make-shift shockwhip that Jade had constructed from copper wires, discarded bridge cable and a cut up car battery.  
Armed and ready, they had been pleasantly surprised to find the place complete empty. Nothing but an old generator that barely operated could be found within the twelve by twelve square foot room. It had taken Sidi four days to gather the resources and Jade several hours to get the generator working, but in under a week they had the generator operating as much needed heat and lighting.  
During that period, they slept bundled inside a stuffed trash bag, leaving the safety of their newfound home only to gather food and water. It was not until much time had passed that they felt comfortable leaving again.

Since then, the Den had been their safe haven as well as base of operations. Secure in their underground hold, the sisters had taken it upon themselves to carve as luxurious a life as a child of the street could hope to have, while striking back at the wealthy and privileged that preyed upon others like them. Heists became a regularity, with a steadily growing pool of resources that could no longer fit comfortably in the Den. They had small hidden caches throughout the City both above and below ground. If someone were to discover their home, at least the sisters wouldn't starve to death.

Jade pried the door open on its rusted hinges, wincing at the loud screech of metal against metal and looking over her shoulder in panic.  
Sidi gave her an amused, if slightly exasperated look. "There's no one there, doofus. Relax."  
Jade nodded tiredly, pushing the door open wide enough for Sidi to get through, before slamming it shut and locking it behind them both.  
Sidi tossed the bag into the corner with another loud crash before kicking back on the mattress with a sigh.  
Jade nearly lost it right then and there. "Do you-?!"  
"Know what's in there?" Sidi shot her a grin. "Course, lil sis."  
She tossed Jade a small bundle, which the girl nearly missed.  
"Phones, pods, devices, some goggles, a pair of batteries, and a laptop. Knock yourself out." Sidi said.  
Jade gently opened the bag, spilling the assorted technology out onto the floor. For her, food had always been trivial. Devices had always been her passion. She relished the chance to assemble technology from scrap, especially when it could be used in some of the heists. Acquiring even more had always sent tingles up her spine, particularly phones.

Jade adored the little things. She loved sticking her slim fingers in the inner workings of a phone and gutting it, piece by piece, only to reassemble it and try again. Her heart always soared as she spent hours breaking the passwords men and women used to keep them safe, and raced against time as she fought to learn as much as she could before the battery died, and was then forced to wait in painful anticipation as the bar on the screen ever so slowly went from red to green while hooked up to the generator.  
Never in her life had she had access to a laptop. The very prospect drove her heartbeat up three notches.

"You wan' a doughnu'?"  
Jade was woken from her reverie by a bright pink box being waved around just in front of her face. Sidi could barely speak, having already tried to eat three of the puffed up cake-bagels.

Sidi had always loved food. The same rabid obsession that drove Jade to scavenge for technology was the force that woke her big sister up each day. Desserts had always been a close favorite, particularly rare ones, like pastries. Lack of restraint when it came to stealing dessert had nearly gotten them both caught on multiple occasions.  
Sidi always tried to share the really special ones.

"It tastes better when you eat with someone you love." she had replied simply when Jade asked about it.

Jade did not quite understand. How does anything taste better shared? At best, the flavor would remain the same, unchanged. Nothing chemically changes if you split food with someone, unless you tried to share half-eaten food. Which you wouldn't, because that is disgusting.  
Nevertheless, she humored her sister during times like these. It made Sidi happy, and that made Jade happy.  
Jade reached into the box, plucking a doughnut from the dark interior, and munched on it absentmindedly while getting to work on her first phone.  
The food may as well have been cardboard for all the interest she showed in eating it. Jade toyed with the hard plastic casing for a couple minutes, taking care to avoid damaging the inner workings as she pried the little computer open like a flashy silver oyster.

It always caused her pain to break the phones. There was so much to learn from busting the password and exploring the near-endless memory banks within. Jade had considered identity theft, what with all the technological pieces she had assembled, but she just didn't understand enough to try and attempt it. It wasn't a risk worth taking.  
Sidi was watching her now. Jade could feel her sister's keen but uncomprehending eyes on the tangle of plastic, chips, and wires that had once been a phone clutched in her palm.  
"Anything useful?" Sidi quested.  
Jade shook her head. "Nothing yet, but give it some time. I've only just started."

Sidi leaned back on the bulging sack of food, reaching an arm inside it and pulling out what appeared to be a package of dried fruit. The slightly sugar-coated surface reflected the light as the girl brought it to her open mouth.  
A thought occurred to Jade. "You shouldn't be eating that first." she said quietly.  
Sidi looked at her quizzically. "Wh' not?" she said through her mouthful.  
"It won't spoil."  
"So?" she replied, taking another careless bite.  
"We don't have the tools to keep that food cold!" Jade raised her voice slightly, frustrated at her sister's density. "It'll rot, and then we'll have rats in here on top of everything else we have to deal with."  
Sidi finished her snack in a single bite. "Can't you... I dunno... build a fridge?"  
Jade gave her a doubtful look. "A fridge?"  
"Maybe a cooler. I could nab some parts from the junkyard, if you don't mind waitin' till evening." Sidi shrugged. The junkyard was all the way at the edge of the City, but it had proved an invaluable pool of resources over the past years. It was unbelievable what people would throw away.  
Jade sighed. "Sure Sidi. You want me to come with you?"  
Sidi got up with a groan. "Nah... you should just kick back an' relax. Get to work on those phones. I won't be long."  
Jade opened her mouth to complain, but had herself silenced with a glare from her sister.  
"You know what to grab?" Jade asked in a quiet voice.  
Sidi ruffled her hair before reaching for the door.  
"I'll figure it out." she replied with wink.

And left without a trace, locking the door behind her.

* * *

 **Hello my friends and fellow readers! This is the first chapter of a rather long but nevertheless entertaining project I felt the need to undertake.**

 **Now, I know that there may be some among you who are tired of these 'Author's notes', who just want to either get this page over with and read on or leave altogether, but I feel as if I have some explaining to do.**

 **First of all, let us discuss the setting. Why during the Collapse? Well, for one, it gives a lot more creative freedom since it is paid very little attention in the direct Destiny lore. Two, I think it is a time and place I don't feel many have yet written about, and I really, really liked the setting for this little story. Three, it does NOT CONTAIN THE GAURDIANS. Not immediately, anyways. They make writing difficult because they are so completely overpowered, player-controlled as they are. This story does not focus on the Guardians, but rather the four races that the darkness is comprised of.**

 **Second, I wish to address my own disgusting, blatant audacity in putting this OC in such a prominent place in the lore. In truth, I have no excuse. I considered a multitude of ways around this other than choosing a different story to write, but I just couldn't think of any good ideas. Forgive me :(**

 **'Prominent place in the lore?' not yet, but Jade will be. Blame me.**

 **I do not possess the writing skill to make this a truly readable story. Sad and weak as my writing may be, reviews make an incredible difference. I encourage criticism! Well thought out, it can change the course of the way a story is structured. Same can be said for anything you enjoyed that you want to see again. Your intelligence is respected and needed!**


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